We went to Fuddruckers for supper last night, and stopped by Ruckers for a few games on “One Token Tuesdays” which was good. I tried playing drum mania again, but it was too loud in there for the songs that I picked. I’m not a very visual person I guess, so without the musical cues, I couldn’t keep the beat very well. William picked a couple of games to play, which I don’t believe he’s ever done before (usually I’m the one suggesting them to him) and I think he had fun. We got home, and he fell asleep on the couch - something that doesn’t happen very often.

Simpson’s quote of the day: “Curse you, magic beans!” - Homer

I’m able to bend my leg, and walk semi-normally. Last night I made a trip into the basement, and made it back up the stairs too. It’s all good stuff. I’m still wearing the splint, mainly because it makes it much easier to keep my leg straight, but also it makes walking feel more stable. I don’t know how long I’ll be a gimp still, but at least I’m less of a gimp than I was

Thanksgiving was good, and I don’t have much to say about it beyond that.

I did get a chance to check out some of the “New” NHL last week, and for the most part I liked what I saw. The game did flow better, and there were several spots where I saw guys able to skate when you could see how badly the defender wanted to hook them but refrained. I still think the shootout is an abomination that should never have seen the light of day. I also don’t care for the restriction on goalies handling the puck. Minor things though - scoring seems pretty high, which is great, but more importantly, there is more excitement - more rushes, big plays, good chances. I didn’t notice much hitting though. I guess we’ll see how long the “new” NHL stays new before they fall back into the same old clutch and grab league.

Simpson’s quote of the day: “Fill it up with petroleum distillate, and re-vulcanize my tires, post-haste!” - Mr. Burns

I had surgery today (ok, yesterday, since I’m posting this at an obscene hour) and it went well. There was a partial cartilage tear, and a partial ACL tear. The doctor removed some scar tissue, and I can straighten my leg now. In fact, it’s in a splint to make sure the muscles don’t bind themselves, since my leg hasn’t been straight in nearly a month. I can walk around without crutches, though the knee still needs some healing. I’ll have physiotherapy for a while to restore the knee’s strength. Overall, I’m pretty happy with how it’s going, and look forward to getting back to normal eventually.

I really should try to get some sleep now though.

Simpson’s quote of the day: “Stupid TV - Be more funny!” - Homer

Surgery goes tomorrow morning, and I will be checking into the hospital at 7:30. I don’t recall ever being in the hospital previously except as a visitor, so this will be new to me. Wish me luck!

Simpson’s quote of the day: “My God! The Mad Magazine Special Edition. They only put out seventeen of these a year.” - Bart

As you may or may not have noticed, this site had some connection problems over the last four or five days. The tech came out today and did something (Erin didn’t find out what) and now the connection seems more stable. Hopefully that’s all behind us.

William and I hung out last night while Erin and Julia went to a Welcome Waggon baby shower (she was there on official LaLecheLeague business, but I didn’t ask for details) We played a little bit of Katamari, and did some light cleaning. I cleared Katamari last night - another short game - but continued to play it. Unlike the first one, I feel like I’ve only scratched the surface of the game. There are lots of new and exciting things for me to roll up yet.

As part of the preparation for surgery, I have to scrub my knee with soap for 10 minutes a day. It hurt like crazy, but I did it this morning. I’m really glad that I got surgery booked so quickly, because this hobbling around on crutches is getting mighty old. I can’t imagine what it would be like if I had to wait three months, six months or a year. Crazy.

The next couple of nights will likely be pretty boring around our house, as countdown to surgery gets underway. I go in first thing Thursday morning, which is getting closer every minute.

Simpson’s quote of the day: “Watch it, Smithers. That sponge has corners, you know.” - Mr. Burns

Friday afternoon, the thought occurred to me that Serenity was premiering. I called Erin, and suggested that we should try to go. You know, get out and see a movie together - something we don’t do nearly often enough. Well, with some kicking and screaming, we managed to get William to my parent’s place where he was babysat for the duration. The plan was that we’d get some supper first, but with all the kicking and screaming, we didn’t have time, so we didn’t eat until 9:00.

We took Julia with us, and I think some people were a little nervous that this tiny baby would disrupt their moviegoing experience. She was good as gold - two tiny little squawks to ask for milk, and she slept through most of the show. As for the movie - it was pretty good. I won’t say I was blown away, but I wasn’t disappointed either. It fit with the series, but had some points that were clearly “this is a movie, not a TV show” convention inspired. I won’t say anything more than that about it because I know some of you are planning on seeing it yet.

Oh, and the other thing that I’ll mention about it. Looking around the audience, it became apparent that in a fair fight, the women there would likely have kicked the men’s asses. You had all these mousy geeky guys, and an equal number of burly lumberjack women all in the same room. Ah, most people were probably average, that’s just the impression that I got.

We also picked up the sequel to Katamari Damacy on the weekend - “We Love Katamari” Good game, more of the same. All the storyline is crap (as usual) but the gameplay is so much fun that I’ll forgive it. Some unique levels, and I’ve had fun playing it thus far.

Simpson’s quote of the day: “Ralph, this better not be about your cat.” - Miss Hoover